This was Link's first time entering the Wilderness Battlefield.
Despite its name, the so-called "Wilderness Battlefield" was, in truth, a massive and ancient forest stretching endlessly in all directions.
Besides Link, there were more than a dozen others who had signed up for the same round of live combat training.
However, unlike the others—who had clearly arrived with established teams—Link was the only one going in alone.
A middle-aged man with a scar across his face noticed Link standing by himself and approached, his tone both curious and slightly concerned.
"Young man, you're out here alone for live combat training? Must mean your talent's not too bad, huh?"
"But let me give you a word of advice. The Wilderness Battlefield may not compare to the actual frontlines, but don't forget—you'll still be fighting real Moonfolk out here."
"If you're inexperienced, I really don't recommend exploring on your own. It's far too dangerous. If you don't mind, you're welcome to join our team temporarily. That way, we can look out for each other."
Link smiled politely and shook his head.
"Thanks, Uncle, but I'd like to try it alone first."
In truth, Link's real objective wasn't the Wilderness Battlefield itself, but a secluded area near its outer edge.
Based on the intelligence he had gathered, there was supposedly a group of Moonfolk with mental-type talents hiding in that area.
Link had long since realized that his mind power was a glaring weakness, so he wanted to seek out such talents to fill in that gap.
In other words—he had come here with the intention of dying. Teaming up with others would only complicate matters.
Seeing Link's firm refusal, the scar-faced man gave an awkward chuckle but didn't press the issue.
However, a blonde girl standing beside him with a slim and elegant bow on her back seemed less understanding. She clicked her tongue and sneered,
"Oh, dear brother. Rejected again, huh?"
"You always want to help people, but you still haven't figured it out—not everyone wants your help."
"But I guess it's better this way. Taking a rookie along would've just dragged us down anyway."
She glanced at Link with a mocking smile, her words dripping with disdain.
"Since you're such a newbie, you'd better watch your back."
Link simply gave a helpless smile. It wasn't in his nature to take such jabs personally.
The scar-faced man, on the other hand, scowled and shot the girl a sharp glare, clearly displeased with her attitude.
Link didn't linger.
With no further delay, he turned and headed into the depths of the forest.
His mission was clear: seek out Moonfolk with mental-type talents and die by their hands.
That wasn't his only goal, though.
Along the way, he'd use any opportunity to hone his skills and grow stronger.
And sure enough, the deeper he ventured, the more he could feel something stirring.
His mind grew sharper and more alert—and his spiritual powers began to gradually increase.
This unexpected development left Link stunned for a moment. But then, the reason behind it became obvious.
It was quite simple:
The closer one got to the frontlines, the more abundant the spiritual powers in the environment became.
Conversely, the further back in human-controlled territory, the more diluted and scarce the spiritual energy.
That was why most powerful Espers preferred to stay near the frontlines rather than retreat to the safety of the rear.
After all, training in a rich spiritual power environment led to faster growth.
Guided by Lib's support and his own intuition, Link soon discovered signs of Moonfolk activity.
Following the trail, he quickly came across three Fire Rats.
Lib scanned them and reported that none of the three carried any talents suitable for Link.
So, Link didn't hesitate. He immediately launched an attack!
As spiritual powers gathered around him, a reinforced Shadow Arrow appeared at his fingertips.
With the explosive boost granted by his talent, its power increased a hundredfold.
Against Level 1 Moonfolk, it was a complete sweep.
Even though Link was technically just a Level 1 Esper, his real combat strength already rivaled that of a Level 2 Esper.
In a single strike, the three Fire Rats were instantly eliminated.
This battle gave Link a much clearer sense of his current strength.
And he had to admit, the [Spiritual Powers Manipulation] talent was downright broken.
It pushed offense to its absolute limit—a talent that magnified every ounce of destructive potential.
No wonder that traitor had possessed such overwhelming power when he used it.
Still, Link wasn't discouraged. He was determined that one day, he would surpass that betrayer.
Meanwhile, elsewhere in the forest…
The blonde girl was covered in blood, her breathing ragged as she looked toward her brother, who was now missing an arm.
"Brother… are we going to die here?"
"Save your strength. We need to find a way to break through!"
Back on Link's side, he continued advancing, searching for more traces of Moonfolk.
For him, practicing new skills had become somewhat addictive.
Each battle gave him a unique kind of thrill—a sense of immersion and learning that sparked new insights.
Perhaps this was what people called "combat instinct."
Link had a hunch that if he kept refining his skills, something transformative would eventually happen.
Just as that thought crossed his mind, a sudden, overpowering stench of blood wafted through the air.
"Huh? Why does it smell so strongly of blood here?"
He frowned and instinctively moved toward the source of the scent.
Only a few minutes later, the sight that greeted him made his scalp go numb.
Ahead of him, the ground was littered with severed limbs and mangled bodies.
Pools of blood had soaked into the earth, staining the entire forest floor a deep crimson.
And amid the carnage were several Lunabbit—busily feasting.
If judged by appearance alone, Lunabbit looked incredibly cute—almost like something pulled straight from an anime.
Fluffy ears, round eyes, a harmless demeanor.
But at this moment, there was nothing cute about them at all.
Their triple-split mouths were tearing into human remains, chomping and grinding with sickening delight.
Blood dripped from their fur-covered jaws, turning their soft white faces into something monstrous.
Wait… something's not right.
Aren't Lunabbit supposed to be herbivorous Moonfolk?
Why are they eating humans?
Even Lib had no explanation for this.
It was simply too bizarre.
What horrified Link even more was that these corpses… had clearly died just moments ago.
And under normal circumstances, if these people were in danger, they could've easily called for help.
The training center had emergency responders on standby.
Each participant even wore wristbands with basic defensive features.
But judging by the state of the bodies, none of those protections had even been activated!
What had happened?
Could they have died so fast that they didn't even have time to trigger their defenses?